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Best pizza ovens for 2023..

The trend for outdoor pizza ovens has grown and grown in the last three years, as homeowners increasingly recognise their ease of use and how they can turn dinner with friends into an occasion faster than you can say pepperoni.

With pizza ovens costing anywhere between £150 and ten times that, how do you know which sort is the best pizza oven for your garden? Here are our top tips on choosing the best pizza oven for you.

First, there are two main types of pizza oven – gas and woodburning. Both have their pros and cons, but both work in the same way – they produce a massively hot blast of heat that rises to the top of the overn’s dome and drops down, cooking the pizza from above as well as below. Pizzas cook very rapidly – often under 2 minutes – so you really need to pay attention!

Gas pizza ovens pros & cons

PRO: Fast to warm up, easy to operate and control and easy to clean

CON: You won’t get that authentic wood-fired taste, you will only be able to cook one pizza at a time

Wood fired pizza ovens pros & cons

PRO: You can achieve the huge temperatures you need for a charred crust and soft centre (500 degrees +, your pizzas will taste great and your guests will love the whole experience

CON: They take a while to heat up, they produce a lot of smoke (so you need to choose carefully where you locate it) and they’re messy.

What makes a good gas-fired pizza oven?

If you’re choosing a gas-fired oven, consider these three key aspects:

  1. Ease of set up
  2. Portability
  3. Maximum temperature
  4. Cost

If you’re buying a pizza oven for your garden, chances are you’re going to be setting it up and attaching the gas bottle yourself. You don’t want to take risks with something that can get super hot, and has a gas bottle attached, so check reviews to ensure it’s not fiddly or too complicated.

Having your own gas-powered pizza oven may make you extra-popular in the summer months, as these are often compact enough to be packed up and taken to friends’ houses – if this is something you can see being a positive, look at the weight of your prospective purchase before you hit the buy button. 

To cook an authentic restaurant quality pizza, you need your oven to get up to 500 degrees, and stay that way the whole time you’re cooking. Check max temperatures for your favourite ovens before committing. If it does say – best stay away.

Cost is always a factor – the big brands often cost considerably more without offering a commensurate uplift in results, so take a little time to assess before making your final decision. There are some brands well-known for being leaders in their field, such as Gozney, and they will have options within a wide price range, of course. And, of course, you’ll need to buy gas to fuel your oven, and to get to those necessary high temperatures needs a lot of gas.

How to choose the best wood-fired pizza oven

You have two options here – a built-in brick and clay pizza oven (build your own or have one built), or a stainless steel wood-fired oven. When considering a wood fired oven, here’s what you should think about.

  1. Portability

A stainless steel wood fired pizza oven will, usually, come on a stand with wheels, so you can move it about the garden, or even take it to friends’ houses. A built-in pizza oven can’t be moved and will have to stay where it is when you move house.

  1. Ease of use

If you’re buying a stainless steel one, check if it’s easy to assemble and, most importantly, check how you clean it. Ideally find one with an ash box that’s easy to slide out. Also be aware – portable pizza ovens can get very, very hot on the outside, so keeping children (and merry adults) at a distance is vital. Clay ovens lose less heat this way, so a built-in one might be a better option if you have space.

  1. Cost

As above! However, If you’re keen on a wood-fired pizza oven, there’s always the DIY option. You can find pizza oven kits to assemble yourself, or if you’re a confident DIY-er, find a YouTube video and design your own. This way you can spread the cost over a few months. If you want a portable wood fired pizza oven, you will need to buy wood pellets to fuel it. If you’re going with a larger built-in oven, you’ll need to source well-seasoned wood.

Finally, pizza ovens get very hot and also have a chimney that sends out very hot smoke, so whichever type you choose, take some time to check if it’s in a safe place, away from overhead trees and not too close to a wooden fence or hedge, you don’t need a visit from the fire brigade to round off your pizza night.

So, all you have to do now is decide on your favourite topping. Ham and pineapple, anybody?

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